Vietnamese Pangasius in the top 10 most popular seafood species in the US

Pangasius consumption continued to increase from 0.628 pounds per capita in 2011 to 0.726 pounds per capita in 2012. In contrast, the average consumption of farmed catfish in the United States decreased from 0.559 pounds per capita to 0.5 pounds per capita, causing the species to drop from seventh place in 2011 to ninth place in 2012. This is the fifth consecutive year that catfish consumption has decreased, and this is the lowest level of consumption. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, US consumption of this farmed fish reached more than 1 pound per capita.

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Consumption of canned tuna, shrimp, and Alaska pollock in the United States decreased to 3.8 pounds per person, 2.4 pounds per person, and 2,020 pounds per person, respectively. Despite the decrease in volume, shrimp, canned tuna, and salmon remained in the top three most consumed products in the United States.

This year, there was a change in the fourth spot: tilapia surpassed Alaska pollock to become the fourth most popular fish in the United States, with an average consumption of 1.476 pounds per person. Alaska pollock fell to fifth place, with 1.167 pounds per person. Tilapia first rose to fourth place in 2010, before Alaska pollock reclaimed the spot in 2011. Tilapia consumption has been growing steadily since 2002, with an average consumption of 0.40 pounds per person. After 10 years, consumption of this fish reached 1.5 pounds per person in 2012.

According to NFI, the top 10 most popular seafood species in the US account for more than 90% of total seafood consumption in this market. This list has not changed significantly compared to 2011, but notably, catfish and tilapia grew by 15%; salmon also increased slightly.

According to Vietnam Fisheries